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EXPOSITORYEVANGELISM

APhilosophyofPreaching,TeachingandEvangelism

BY

AntonM.VanStraaten

The Ephesians 4:12 Leadership Academy Copyright (2017)

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Philosophy of Preaching: for the Purpose of Teaching, Evangelism and Discipleship

The primary method that our Puritan forefathers used to communicate the gospel was plain “expository style” preaching. The practice of evangelism was in the form of preaching.1 We will see that in this philosophy of preaching, the Puritans believed that the message and methods of evangelism were not only inseparable from the preaching, but also inseparable from the inward disposition of the evangelist-preacher himself. That disposition included a heartfelt dependence on the Holy Spirit, and was coupled, of course, with diligent study and earnest prayer. The preacher spoke with a faith and trust in God’s Word, and with a confidence that the Spirit would bless all evangelistic efforts. As the Puritans adopted biblical principles of evangelism in their preaching ministry, so does the author of this essay embrace these timeless principles of evangelistic expository preaching.

The Puritan Method of Preaching: Evangelizing, Teaching, and Discipleship from the Pulpit

“Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:3, NASB)

Just as the Apostles based the foundation of their evangelistic ministries on the centrality of both preaching and prayer, so preaching was, for the Puritan, the main method of evangelism. For the Pastor-Teacher, then, it was a Word-centered task. Although evangelism was the work of the Church as a whole, it was more particularly the work of the leadership and ministry workers, especially that of the preacher. Timothy, by being encouraged to do the work of a Pastor, was then also being exhorted to do the work of an evangelist-- remaining utterly dependent upon God, he devoted himself to prayer and evangelism, and to the “teaching and preaching of the Word” (2 Timothy 4:5; 1 Timothy 3).

Furthermore preaching was, for the Puritan pastor, the main method of “making disciples,” and “teaching them the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). The great commission is a call to make disciples, not simply to make converts.2 So, for the pastor, the making of disciples was the priority of his preaching. Preaching pastors were truly “fishers of

1 Joel Beeke, Puritan Evangelism: A Biblical Approach (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Reformation Heritage Books, 2007), 3. 2 Michael Horton, The Gospel Commission Recovering God’s strategy for making Disciples (Grand Rapids, Mich. Baker Publishing, 2012), 17.

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men,” seeking to awaken the unconverted to their need for Christ through the preaching of the Word, while teaching the converted to obey all that Christ had commanded.

The effective pastor’s preaching will always be giving priority to the task of the Great Commission. In Matthew 28:19-20, the command to “make disciples” in fact calls for continued discipleship. Disciples ought to be fully committed to following Christ, making the priority of their lives obedience and sanctification. However, the goal in today’s pulpits appears to be that of pursuing “decisions” only, rather than “making disciples.” Michael Horton, of Westminster Seminary, makes the point that “instead of reaching the lost, are we not losing the reached? Is the goal of preaching not also for continued discipleship?” 3

Finally, preaching was “instruction” in obedience for the Puritan. It involved declaring the entire economy of redemption by focusing on the holiness of God, the saving work of all three Persons of the Trinity, and the instruction to obey the commandments of Christ. Should not the preaching and teaching efforts of a pastor, therefore, include instruction from the whole counsel of God’s Word (Acts 20:27)?

Discipleship through preaching provides both guidance and instruction for His disciples on how to live a life of faith and repentance, and a life of imitation of and commitment to Christ (Matthew 28:20; 1 Corinthians 11:1). Evangelistic expository preaching teaches God’s way of salvation, but also warns of God’s discipline and of His judgment-- of condemnation for those who persist in their unbelief and impenitence; it nevertheless will also encourage those who respond in faith and do repent with the rewards of obedience. Faithful evangelistic expository preaching will come to fruition in due season, and many who are appointed to eternal life will believe the gospel of hope and commit to it (Acts 13:48).

Evangelistic Expository Preaching is thoroughly Biblical

Puritan preaching was thoroughly biblical. They would say “The first and principal duty of a pastor is to feed the flock by diligent preaching of the word.” 4 Evangelistic expository preaching is biblical preaching; for “the sermon is not just hinged to Scripture: it quite literally exists inside the Word of God; the text is not in the sermon, but the sermon is in the text.” 5 For the preacher of the expository sermon, the duty, then, is not to speak about the Bible, but rather it is letting the Bible speak through the sermon. It is incumbent, therefore, upon the evangelistic expositor to prepare himself by praying over the Scripture and by studying it with diligence; he is then able to explain it with wisdom. In his dependency upon God, he prepares for the exposition of God’s word, having meditated upon it, practiced and applied it-- he then

3 Michael Horton, 11. 4 Joel Beeke, Puritan Evangelism, 9. Also see1 Peter 1:5. 5 Joel Beeke, 9.

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delivers it passionately. 6 The Puritans used to say that Scripture is a “love letter sent to you from God, and those hearing it will experience its warming, and transforming power.” The expectation of the preacher was that he deliver “the love letter” wisely, bringing it in its fullest authority, interpreting it cautiously and fearfully; interpreting it accurately with sound hermeneutical principles.7

In response to the “love letter,” the Puritan, Thomas Watson, provided numerous guidelines on how to listen to the preacher. “Come to the Word with a holy appetite and a teachable heart. Sit under the Word attentively; receive it with meekness, and mingle it with faith. Then retain the Word, pray over it, practice it, and speak to others about it.” 8

Many modern sermons are, to the contrary, termed “evangelistic” or “gospel centered sermons” at the expense of sound hermeneutical principles. A zeal for preaching evangelistically could be at the expense of poor exegesis and hermeneutics. When preaching “evangelistic sermons” the preacher might unwittingly be incorporating themes foreign to the text. Verses are often taken out of context, or even strung together to simplify a point.

Assigning Foreign Meanings to a Passage for the Sake of Evangelizing

Sermons may misconstrue the intended message that the original author attempted to convey. For example, considering Revelation 3:20: was it the Apostle John’s intention to call people to open their hearts for Jesus who “is knocking at the door” of their hearts? In light of the simplified approach to evangelism the preacher misses the intended appeal to the church. Is Christ’s letter not addressed to the church at Laodicea, and are they not known as the lukewarm church? The door at which Christ is knocking is not the door to a single human heart, but to the Laodicean church that has become “lukewarm” in its devotion and doctrine. Christ was outside of this apostate church and wanted to come in—something that could only happen if the church and its leader repented of the “lukewarm” apostasy.9

Evangelism from the Whole Counsel of God

In the quest to “simplify the gospel,” the modern preacher is often tempted to “isolate” the gospel from its biblical context. But the gospel is cemented into the entire counsel of God’s will. 6 Beeke, 10. 7 Hermeneutics are principles for interpretation. These include authorial intent, context, progressive revelation, and the analogy of faith, and are but a few of many ways that help the preacher to be faithful in his interpretation of the Word. The author of this essay prefers a grammatical-historical hermeneutic: According to Luther's new hermeneutic, which was actually just the recovered hermeneutic of the earliest Church Fathers, each bible passage had one basic meaning, which was firmly rooted in historical truth, and was related accurately according to the common principles of human language. Thus, it was “historical,” relating to real, interconnected historical events, and acknowledged and understood in the “grammatical” use of human language. The grammatical-historical hermeneutic is absolutely central to accurate interpretation, because it tethers the truth of the scriptures to real, historical events. According to the well-established dictates of biblical hermeneutics, this exegetical study of the scriptures should provide the preacher with confidence.

8 Beeke, 10. 9 Macarthur Study Bible, Revelation 3:14-22

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Can the crucified Christ be separated from Genesis 1:1? Is He not the eternal Word of John 1:1? Nevertheless, many pastors often favor a simple gospel message, often neglecting the place of the gospel in the entirety of scripture. Yet, when we look at the Acts of the Apostles, we amazingly find that Paul, in his evangelistic zeal, did not refrain from declaring to the elders of Ephesus the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). The Puritans, likewise, wrote and preached their evangelistic messages by developing one scriptural passage after another. Our evangelistic efforts must be similarly grounded in the entire counsel of God’s will. We must search, use and apply the entirety of Scripture, for it is inspired by God and profitable for instruction, conviction, correction, and conformation to God’s will (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Are all of the scriptures not equally inspired, and equally profitable, to point people to their need for Christ? The truly evangelistic message will draw from the deep well of the “whole counsel” of God’s revelation. The evangelistic sermon that bears witness to the authority, eternality, and deity of Christ will be a far more effective and fruitful method of discipleship than the “simplified” approach to make followers of Christ. Only in the light of the “whole body of divinity” (as the Puritans liked to call it) could a minister provide a diagnosis of, and the prescription for, and the cure for, spiritual disease in those who were plagued by the body of sin and death.

Preaching that is Unashamedly Doctrinal

The Puritans were not afraid to preach the body of doctrine. They did not conciliate their hearers by lightening up their messages with humorous stories or folksy anecdotes. They preached all the weighty truths of God.

As a dying man to dying men As never sure to preach again!

In the sixty-seven chapters of his book The Evil of Evils, Jeremiah Burroughs exposes sin for what it is: “the least sin involves more evil than the greatest affliction; sin and God are contrary to each other; sin opposes all that is good; sin is the poison of all evils; sin bears an infinite dimension and character; and sin makes us comfortable with the devil.” 10

Their preaching was unashamedly doctrinal. Though Puritan preachers encouraged their listeners with the “whole counsel of God,” they would nevertheless always “close,” appropriately, with a free offer to come to Christ in faith and repentance.11

The pastor must therefore proclaim the entire “Gospel,” which cannot be isolated from the rest of the Bible. Can there be a gospel without bringing in to it God’s nature, and His being? Can

10 Beeke, 16. 11 Those who would receive the offer of Christ, through faith, would then sign a document of total commitment in which they “covenanted” (surrendered) their entire lives to God. Typically this would be followed by baptism, and the incorporation into the local church body (Sermon, “Baptizing them and Teaching them” Matthew 28:19, Acts 2:36-42, also see Orland EV. Free Church Membership Philosophy: The Priority of Baptism and Membership).

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anyone understand the gospel without knowing God’s Trinitarian personality and His glorious attributes as revealed through creation? The gospel will, however, also include the wrath, love, judgment, grace, forgiveness, justice and mercy of God. While modern evangelism claims John 3:16 as the “starting point for evangelism,” the Puritan would more likely begin with Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God…” 12

All evangelism must, therefore, be rooted in solid doctrine, and founded on the basis of the entire context of Scripture. The “Preaching of Christ” is always to be done with “much winsomeness and much grace,” but it never ignores the importance of “doctrinal integrity.”13 All evangelistic preaching must repeatedly present Christ in the context of Scripture, with His ability to save, His willingness to save, and with His preciousness as the only Redeemer of lost sinners.”14

Preaching that Graciously Confronts the Soul

Contrary to today’s “felt-need” messages the Puritan preacher was not worried about confronting the souls of listeners. They were far more concerned about honoring God, than “hurting feelings.” Self-esteem messages generally do not center upon the holiness of the triune God, and the sinfulness of humanity. Rather they focus on the “felt-needs of individuals” with catchy titles like “How Jesus can offer you______” [fill in the blank].15 We have nothing to esteem in ourselves aside from God. “Apart from His grace, we are fallen, wretched, unworthy and hell-bound,” the Puritans would say.16 Preaching that Calls Disciples to Obedience

In Matthew 28:20 Christ said, “Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” It was natural for the Puritan evangelists to stress holiness, obedience and sanctification in evangelism and discipleship. They preached that the believer must “walk the king’s highway of holiness in gratitude, service, obedience, love, and self-denial.” 17

Preaching that is Experiential and Relational

For many listening to the sermons of today, they might inspire, invigorate, or invite, but they do not necessarily call for transformation. Sermons often translate into mere knowledge, which many will understand intellectually, but few would understand it experientially. In the exercise of the graces of faith and repentance, however, there naturally follows a hunger for obedience and a desire for godliness through the experiential application of God’s Word (Hebrew 5:12-13). This is affirmed by 2 Peter 1:3, “seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life [eternal justification] and godliness [practical

12 Beeke, 18. 13 The Father who created us with dignity in His image; the Son who restores that dignity to us through redemption and the adoption as sons; and the Holy Spirit who indwells us and makes our souls and bodies his temple. 14 Beeke, 21. 15 SeeDr.AlbertMohler,athttp://www.albertmohler.com/2006/09/14/the-problem-of-preaching-to-felt-needs/16 Beeke, 22. 17 Beeke, 21, also see Mark 8:34.

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sanctification], through the true knowledge [experiential] of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence” (NASB).

Evangelistic expository preaching stresses the need to know Christ through the experience of the truths of the Word of God at work inside the individual. Expository preaching explains transformation in terms of biblical truth, often discriminating between how matters ought to be and how matters do tend to go. This perspective of preaching divine truth is intensely practical and understandable. It does not shudder at helping God’s people understand where there is a disparity between the “how they ought to go” and “how they might have gone!” Paul Helm says, “The situation calls for preaching that will cover the full range of Christian experience, and a developed, experimental [or experiential] theology.” The preaching must give guidance and instruction to Christians in terms of their actual experience to which they are able to relate.18

Preaching that Is Discriminatory

In this Christ-centered context of preaching, the Puritan expositor was marked by a discriminating application of truth to the actual experience in people’s lives.19 Discriminatory preaching defines the disparity between the life of the non-Christian and the life of the true Christian. Discriminatory preaching pronounces the wrath of God on one, and God’s forgiveness of sins, eternal life, on another. Such discriminatory preaching teaches that if our religion is not experiential [a transformational outworking], we will perish – not because experience and application themselves save, but because we understand that it is Christ who saves sinners and we will experience Him personally through growth, continue obedience, and the application of His Word (Hebrews 5:11-6:8). Preaching “discriminatory sermons” will lead to the growth and maturity of the truly saved, but will burden the unsaved with condemnation.

For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned (Hebrews 6:7-8)

It is clear from Hebrews (also see 6:1-3 & 9-10) that the experience of “good fruit” indicates that someone is saved, but the inexperience of “good fruit” may result in condemnation. According to James, faith that is alive is a saving faith, and faith without works is dead and unable to save (James 2:17-18). The Apostle John, also in a discriminatory fashion, separates the believer from the unbeliever. “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His Word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected” (1 John2:3-4). True salvation is always based upon the “Rock,” Jesus Christ, who is the Author and Perfecter of our faith—not upon keeping commandments (Hebrews 12:2; also see Matthew 7:2-27; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2:2). The Puritans were very aware of the deceitfulness of the human heart which can beguile a man’s

18 Paul Helm, as quoted in Puritan Evangelism, 26. 19 Beeke, 28.

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understanding of the reality and authenticity of salvation (Jeremiah 17:9). This being so, Puritan preaching took great pains to identify the marks of grace that distinguish the church from the world, and true believers from merely professing believers.20 Discriminatory preaching, though rare today, was also known in the preaching of both Jonathan Edwards and Thomas Watson. The Word of God is often preached today in a way that will never transform anyone because it never discriminates and never applies to anyone in the pew. Preaching is reduced to a lecture about others-- a catering to the wishes, and the needs of the people.21

Discriminatory preaching will strip away any sense of an earned salvation, of self-justification, and of works-righteousness, and the sinner will rather be driven towards Christ for salvation, righteousness, and justification (Romans 5:1-5). The true disciples of Christ, upon hearing discriminatory preaching, will find joy and reward in their willing obedience and, in their failures, they will humbly turn to reliance upon Christ. They will relish the words of Paul, “you therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:1 NASB).

The true disciple will always be familiar with the struggle against the vestiges of indwelling sin, and the battle against the flesh; but discriminatory preaching will refresh his hope in an always-faithful Christ who provides victory over indwelling sin. He is reminded that “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:16-17). When God’s Word is preached in a discriminatory way, the Holy Spirit uses it to transform men, women, and even nations (Jonah 3). Discriminatory preaching has a much greater potential to convict the unsaved than to deter them, and to perfect the faithful than to leave them barren of fruit.

Preaching that Addresses Indwelling Sin

Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones rightly pointed many years ago that the greatest problem for the present day church is that she is far too “healthy.” The church shows little consciousness of spiritual need or distress. 22 The Reverend, J.S. Sinclair (Free Presbyterian Church) in “The Absence of Sin ” writes, “Today the sense of sin is absent from many supposed conversions . . . it is conspicuous by its absence from the general preaching of the time.” 23 The preacher’s task is to bring an awareness of the continued “presence of sin.” Was it not Paul who said, “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” Yet it was Paul who said, “be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 7:24, 2 Timothy 2:1). The disappearance of sin in preaching marked the disappearance of conviction of sin in many modern pulpits. Some would say there is little need to preach about obedience and

20 This perspective of evangelistic preaching stresses the need for regular self-examination, confession, and meditation upon the Word; and of course the application thereof.20 21 By experientialism we mean that saving faith leads to an experience of sanctification, and can never be removed from the foundation of Scripture, according to Joel Beeke, Puritan Evangelism, 29. 22 Lloyd-Jones in Puritan Evangelism, 30. 23 J.S. Sinclair, “The Absence of Sin” http://www.biblesnet.com/JS%20Sinclair%20The%20Absence%20of%20the%20Sin.pdf

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sanctification for “all are justified in Christ, and not in the works of the law.” [For a more detailed discussion on this matter of Obedience in Preaching see the appendix at the end of this essay]

Considering the Doctrine of Human Depravity in Preaching

Is there any hope in preaching salvation without the conviction of sin, righteousness and judgment? Consider that the work of the Spirit in preaching is to bring the truth of God, the conviction of sin, and the judgment of sin (John 14:26; John 16:8). Is there any reason to believe that when considering the doctrine of depravity in preaching, that it is out of place, or outside of the gospel, or is preaching without love? Not if we remember that “when He [the Holy Spirit] comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.” Modern views of preaching began with Charles Finney. The nineteenth-century revivalist preacher did not drive sinners to repent from sin, partly because of his defective Pelagian view of depravity and sin.24 The Bible, however, when interpreted and expounded properly within the larger body of doctrinal truth, will consider inherent depravity and a total corruption by sin (Genesis 6:5-7). Total depravity results in death and alienation from God. On the other hand, in the Pelagian view of depravity and sin, finds little need to teach that “the natural man” – the non-Christian-- “is dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1-3). Rather, they would say “left to himself, he has the ability to seek God, be convicted of sin, and seek Christ for forgiveness by his own volition.”25 This faulty belief is based on the Pelagian distortion that “human beings are naturally good,” or only “partially depraved.”26 Upon considering the doctrine of depravity, we must not forget that such an inward change of soul [salvation] is generally accompanied with an inward struggle and agony on account of sin. Thus, preaching that heightens an awareness of human depravity should be considered “pure evangelism,” because unconverted sinners are warned of their sin and of the danger of judgment. When convicted by the Spirit, they may be directed to the way of escape, to Jesus Christ, the Solution for sin. Nominal professors would no longer be allowed to sleep in self-complacency and in carnal security, but would be gently prodded to seek Christ.27 The believer, upon hearing the Word preached, would be daily urged to repent and mortify sin through the grace and victory that is in Christ Jesus.28 Sermons that consider the doctrine of human depravity prove to be faithful evangelism, and are in accordance with the work of the 24 Beeke, 33. 25 Ibid., 34 26 See Michael Horton “ Finney denies that regeneration depends on the supernatural gift of God. It is not a change produced from the outside. "If it were, sinners could not be required to effect it. No such change is needed, as the sinner has all the faculties and natural attributes requisite to render perfect obedience to God. "Therefore…”, according to Finney, “...regeneration consists in the sinner changing his ultimate choice, intention, preference." Those who insist that sinners depend on the mercy of God proclaim "the most abominable and ruinous of all falsehoods. It is to mock [the sinner's] intelligence!” https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/pelagiannatural.html 27 Ibid., 35. 28 J.S. Sinclair, “The Absence of the Sense of Sin ” as quoted in Puritan Evangelism, p 35. We have surely fallen upon evil times when the unerring truth of God's Word cannot be spoken of or listened to in the professing Church of Christ, and when blind leaders of the blind so largely occupy the Christian pulpit. We do not touch the various consequences of this popular preaching: meantime, we simply note the fact that the sense of sin, both as a doctrine and an experience, is absent from it to a fatal degree. The sense of sin is also conspicuously absent from the exercise of public prayer (The Absence of the Sense of Sin p. 4).

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Holy Spirit to convict the world of indwelling sin, and to pronounce judgment upon the impenitent.

Holistically Evangelistic

Puritan preaching was holistically evangelistic, and used all of Scripture to confront the whole man.29 Modern evangelic preaching often distinguishes between evangelistic sermons and general sermons. This distinction stresses the “decisional” nature of faith on the part of the sinner. This type of preaching design emphasizes the placing of a call upon men to believe, but does not consider the prior regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. According to Dr. Billy Graham’s invitation system, we believe in order to be born again-- faith precedes and effects regeneration.30 Faith is essential for salvation (Rom. 1:17; Heb. 11:6); it is not a requirement for the rebirth. There is a type of holistically evangelistic preaching, like that of the Puritans, that calls sinners to “cease to do evil,” and to be holy as God is holy (Isa. 1:16b; 1 Peter 1:14-15). It challenges sinners to love God, and obey His holy law with heart and mind and strength. However, many would argue that such preaching is too legalistic, and offers no gospel. This is not a valid argument. Holistically evangelistic preaching is justified on the basis that conversion to God does not normally begin with a conscious decision of faith (accepting Jesus) but rather with conviction, sorrow, and desperation of heart (John 16:8). There exists an inward conviction for failing to obey God’s commands before repentance can ever occur (Luke 5:31-32; 2 Corinthians 7:10-11). In a sense, sinners need to first understand the “bad” news, before they will understand the good news!

Puritan evangelists preached the law before the gospel in much the same way Paul wrote the first three chapters of Romans. The apostle first explained the holiness of God and His law, so that the mouths of sinners would be stopped, and the whole world would be found guilty before God. The Puritans did not urge the wicked to turn from sin because they thought sinners were able to do so, but because they believed that through such a confrontation with the demands of the law, the Holy Spirit would bring sinners to know their helplessness before God and their need for salvation. 31

We do not believe that preaching “falling short of the law of God” would in any way prepare people for salvation by qualifying them to proceed to faith. That would be legalism. Rather, we believe that the gospel is meaningful only to sinners who recognize their sinfulness. Conviction,

29 Ibid.,36 30 If this confessing of Christ by response to an appeal is not for Christians, it is impossible to see how Matthew 10:32 can be used to support the practice. It can only be done by interpreting the confession (which Jesus promises to reward) in a way which the analogy of Scripture does not allow. If this text were, in fact, a guide to the way sinners are to make a “decision for Christ,” it would mean a radically new interpretation of scores of texts in the New Testament-- texts which evangelical Christians have always understood to give the distinguishing characteristics of those who are truly born again, not the way in which that rebirth takes place (Iain Murray, The Invitation System, Banner of Truth, 1967, 1973 p. 6-7). 31 Beeke, 38-39

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or the killing work of the law, is the way that leads to Christ, not a condition for receiving Christ.32

The Law in Evangelism

The Puritans, then, were not afraid to use the Law of God as an instrument of evangelism. In order for man to come to Christ, he must first come to an end of his own righteousness. Law-preaching is more than explaining the Ten Commandments; it is preaching the Law from all scripture. This brings man to the knowledge of sin (Romans 3:20).33 The law then has an evangelistic value: man will soon realize that he cannot be as holy as the law demands, and so the law only condemns him (Galatians 3:10). The preacher would clearly point out that God can save him from wrath by changing his heart and giving him a new righteous nature (John 3:7). The law thus brings a man to come to the end of his own righteousness (Galatians 3:24-25). The law, then, develops the need for salvation and the impossibility of being able to accomplish such a salvation for himself.34

Modern-day evangelists do not believe that the necessity of holiness is a suitable subject for the unconverted, so they do not present the gospel as a divine remedy for corrupt and impotent sinners. Puritans, by contrast, believed that the best news in the world for sinners who are truly convicted of sin is that deliverance from the power of sin is possible through faith in Christ.35 The Gospel offers sinners more than deliverance from the penalty of sin: it also offers sinners the deliverance from the bondage of sin (Romans 6:18, 8:2).36

If sanctification is an important mark of saving faith, then it is understandable why the true convert not only wants to be delivered from the penalty of sin, but he also hungers and thirsts after righteousness and holiness.37 Modern evangelism has lost sight of that motive.38

Four Problems with Modern Evangelism in Regard to Preaching

1. Modern evangelism treats holiness as something separate from salvation. Preaching to convince people to embrace Christ for deliverance from the penalty of their sin is generally an appeal to self-interest, when it offers forgiveness without mentioning the fruits of

32 Ibid., 39 33 Beeke, 40 34 Ibid., 41 35 Ibid., 42 36 Ibid., 41 37 Joseph Alleine (Alarm to the Unconverted, p. 75) as quoted by Beeke, 43 who distinguished between true and false converts in this manner: “When [false converts] have as much as will save them, as they suppose, they look no farther, and so show themselves short of true grace, which always sets men aspiring to perfection (Phil. 3:13).” 38 Ibid., 43

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sanctification, such as self-denying humility and unconditional obedience (Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 8:34).39

2. Modern evangelism minimizes the difficulty of coming to Christ. Preaching that overplays the temporal benefits of living life as a Christian is the type of preaching that attempts to give men who have no conviction of sin an alternative reason to benefit from Christ.

3. Modern evangelism is nothing more than making a profession of faith in Christ. This results in “conversions” without regeneration, and “Christianity” without the corresponding evidence of holy living. Modern churches are filled with people who deceive themselves and others about their true spiritual condition. Those whom the law has not convicted will show little concern for keeping the law once they “believe they are Christians,” and such a delusion may remain with them for the rest of their lives (2 Timothy 3:5; James 1:22).

The Disciples of Christ are regenerated people and not simply a people who have changed their religious profession. Hence they have been given a new nature, but must be taught the character of their new nature (Matthew 28:20 … teaching them to observe all that I commanded you).

The Disciples of Christ love holiness, love the Bible, love the saints, and love the thought of going to heaven; they love to commune with God and desire to leave sin behind forever (Philippians 3:13).

4. Modern evangelism treats regeneration as the fruit of an initial act of faith in Christ. John 2:23-25 says that “many people believed in Jesus’ name, but Jesus did not commit Himself to them because He knew what was in them.” Professors of faith hold to an outward expression that is not backed by internal renewal. This is a kind of intellectual, or emotional, belief is self-confidence in one’s own opinions. Those who truly are “Possessors” of faith have been regenerated, and are able to respond to the call of the gospel, and are persuaded by the Spirit to be holy and obedient (Matthew 22:14; Titus 3:5).

These discrepancies between Puritan evangelism and modern evangelism should prompt us to return to the older message wherein the whole of the Scripture is addressed to the whole man.40

39 Ibid., 43 40 Ibid., 45

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Preaching “Balanced” Sermons

Puritan preaching was studiously symmetrical. There was in Puritan teaching both well-roundedness and good balance.41 Let us consider the benefits and earmarks of evangelistic, expository sermons.

Evangelistic/Expository preaching allows Scripture to dictate the emphasis for each message. When Jonathan Edwards preached on hell, for example, he didn’t make a single reference to heaven. When he later preached on heaven, he didn’t include a word about hell.42

Evangelistic/Expository preaching allows Scripture to determine the topic. Modern evangelism may easily become unbalanced since it is often theme based. Preaching that does not allow for Scripture to determine every major topic is unbalanced preaching.

Evangelistic/Expository preaching instills an appreciation for each scriptural doctrine. Preachers must treasure the full scope of God’s biblical truth rather than just preaching their favorite passages which deal with particular doctrines. Modern evangelism, in contrast, often uses a variety of few texts in order to make a point, but seldom expounds them properly, and thus brings little, if any, doctrine to bear on the work of evangelism.

Evangelistic/Expository preaching affirms right living. The preacher must live what he preaches. For preaching to be balanced, doctrine must be inseparable from godly living.

We need to ask ourselves: Is our preaching, teaching, and evangelizing thoroughly scriptural, unashamedly doctrinal, experimentally practical, holistically evangelistic, and beautifully symmetrical?43

The Method of Evangelistic Expository Preaching:

Plain and Simple Preaching

John Eliot, a great Puritan missionary to the Indians, said that his “way of preaching was very plain; so that the very lambs might wade into his discourses on those texts and themes wherein elephants might swim.”44

Joel Beeke, describes this style of preaching:

1. It gives the basic meaning of a text of Scripture in its context;

41 Ibid., 47 42 Ibid., 48 43 Ibid., 50. 44 Ibid., 54.

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2. It expounds a few profitable points of doctrine gathered from the natural sense of the text;

3. It applies, in plain speech, the doctrines rightly collected to the life and manners of men.

The first part of a Puritan sermon was thus exegetical; the second, doctrinal and didactic; and the third

applicatory. 45

The Evangelistic Expositor considers the categories of his audience: there are some who are ignorant but unteachable; there are those who are teachable but ignorant; there are those who are very knowledgeable but never convicted; then there are the humble who lack assurance, and of course, believers, all mingled together. Each sermon must at least include directions to believers and unbelievers. The unbeliever is usually called to examine himself, and to flee sin, and turn to Christ. However, for the humble believer, there must always be the offer of comfort and assurance after self-examination.

Three Characteristics of an Evangelistic Expository Sermon

It is clear - It is addressed to man as a rational creature. An anti-intellectualistic or emotional gospel appeal will spawn an irrelevant gospel that doesn’t go beyond “felt needs.”46

It is Confrontational – It works hard to pierce the consciences of sinners (Acts 2:37). Evangelistic expository sermons name specific sins, and then ask questions to press home the guilt of those sins upon the consciences of men, women, and children. As one Puritan wrote, “We must go with the stick of divine truth and beat every bush behind which a sinner hides until, like Adam who hid, he stands before God in his nakedness.47

Today, modern evangelism is, for the most part, afraid to confront the conscience! Evangelistic expository preaching is faithful preaching that wounds the conscience just as Proverbs 27:6 states: “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.”

It is Compassionate - It is affectionate, zealous, and optimistic preaching. Evangelistic expository preaching does not just reason with the mind, but it confronts the conscience and appeals to the heart. It preaches out of love for God’s Word, love for the glory of God, and out of a compassion for all people.

45 Ibid., 54-55. 46 Ibid., 59. 47 Ibid., 60.

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The Response in the Pews to Expository Evangelism

The Puritans always followed up on sermons. They would say that one sermon meditated upon is more profitable than a thousand heard. Meditation infuses the Word of God into one’s life and experience. Without meditation truths are developed, but not digested. We could imagine that we would not attempt to eat a nutritious meal by swallowing each bite whole instead of carefully chewing it; neither would the Puritans not consider catechizing, discussing and following-up on sermons—these were essential to Puritan practice.48 Richard Baxter, in The Reformed Pastor, said that he came to the painful conclusion that “some ignorant persons, who have been so long unprofitable hearers, have got more knowledge and remorse of conscience in half an hour’s close disclosure, than they did from ten years public preaching.”49 Following up is essential for evangelizing because it assists people in the self-examination of their spiritual condition.50

The Puritans were not looking for quick and easy conversions: they were committed to building up lifelong believers whose hearts, minds, wills, and affections were won for the service of Christ. How vastly this result differs when we compare it to the results of today’s evangelism, in which preachers press for mass conversions, and then turn over the hard work of follow through and discipleship to others. 51

48 Ibid., 63. 49 Ibid., 66. 50 Joseph Alleine reportedly followed up his work on Sunday five days a week by catechizing church members as well as reaching out with the gospel to people he met on the streets, see Beeke, 68. 51 Ibid., 68.

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